Gheorghe Popescu said of his past actions: 'Even if I wrote notes, I wrote good things.' Photograph: Vadim Ghirda/AP

Gheorghe Popescu, a former Romania captain and Tottenham defender, has admitted to being an informer for the country's secret police during the communist era.

Popescu's admission comes only three days after he denied the allegation, calling a newspaper report that he had been a Securitate informant "a big lie".

In an interview with the daily Evenimentul Zilei today, however, Popescu said he did write four informative notes about team-mates and other colleagues when he was playing at Universitatea Craiova.

The defender was part of a Romania side that qualified for three consecutive World Cups starting in 1990, and two European Championships. He also helped Barcelona win the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1997.

When the allegations surfaced on Monday, the 41-year-old Popescu said he had only signed a document in 1985 promising to "defend the national interests" during the regime of the late dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.

In today's interview he defended his actions. "Even if I wrote notes, I wrote good things," he said. "I praised [those] people."

During Ceausescu's rule, the regime's security services kept tabs on Romania's athletes, and some players involved in international competitions were reportedly asked to share details of their conversations with foreigners.

Adevarul, the daily newspaper, reported on Monday that Popescu had been an informant from 1986 until the regime was toppled three years later. Popescu's 18-year playing career included stints with Spurs, Galatasaray and PSV Eindhoven. He played for Romania 115 times, scoring 16 goals.